Nightclub Blamed in Dallas Cowboy’s Death

DALLAS (CN) – The family of former Dallas Cowboy linebacker Jerry Brown Jr. sued a nightclub that served teammate Josh Brent alcohol before a car crash that killed Brown. Jerry Brown Sr. Beamers Private Club dba Privae Lounge, Bavarian Management, ADRCC LLC and Sharouz Ferdows, in Dallas County Court. Stacy Jackson, of Illinois, filed a similar lawsuit against the club on Oct. 29. Brown Jr. died on Dec. 8, 2012, when the car he and Brent were in crashed, rolled and caught fire. Irving police arrested Brent at the scene and the 25-year-old nose tackle was later indicted for intoxication manslaughter. Prosecutors claim Brent’s blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit. They say that at the time of his arrest, Brent did not have a valid Texas driver’s license and his Illinois license was suspended and expired. He had played with Brown at the University of Illinois. Brent’s trial is scheduled for January. The defendants decided that Brown Jr.’s life “was worth less than the price of so many bottles of alcohol,” the new lawsuit states. “By defendants’ own admission, the alcohol flowed freely at Privae that night. One Privae employee boasted on Twitter that ’12 Cowboys are in theeee [sic] building,’ and that those ‘fools are buying Ace on top of Ace!!!!,'” according to the complaint. Ace refers “Ace of Spaces” Champagne. Brown claims that after his son and Brent left the club, Brent drove his Mercedes into a curb, resulting in the car flipping and catching fire. “Brent is 6 feet, 2 inches tall, and weighs roughly 320 pounds,” the complaint states. “So he must have consumed many of Privae’s drinks to become that inebriated.” Brown Sr. claims the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission concluded there was “sufficient evidence” the club sold alcohol Brent after he was drunk and “conducted practices that caused Privae patrons to consume an excessive amount of alcohol.” “The obviousness of Brent’s intoxication was manifest from the volume of drinks that defendants served – and bragged about serving – to Brent, and from the physical clues Brent exhibited,” the complaint states. “Indeed, only shortly after leaving Privae, Brent exhibited to police multiple signs of intoxication, such as his inability to pass field sobriety tests and his reeking of alcohol.” Beamers did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Brown Sr. seeks damages for wrongful death, negligence and violations of the Texas Dram Shop Act. He is represented by E. Leon Carter with Carter Stafford in Dallas.